Network Rail and TOCs Continue to Put Passengers First in Lockdown

Despite dramatic reductions in journeys during the COVID19 pandemic restrictions, both Network Rail and Train Operating Companies (TOCs) continue to collaborate with key supply chain partners, including L.B. Foster Netpractise, to deliver ongoing improvements in customer communications during lockdown, as well as in readiness for the inevitable return of passengers. 

Network Rail revealed footfall declined an average of 93% at some of London’s busiest stations in the first weeks following the Government’s announcement on 23 March 2020. The Office of Rail and Road also reported that the number of people travelling by train for January to March fell by 51 million compared with the same quarter last year. 

During this enforced lull, software developers at L.B. Foster Netpractise have continued to work with Network Rail and TOCs to develop its new disruptive communications technology. This is designed to put the needs of Network Rail’s passengers first, whilst supporting TOCs’ commitment to the Passenger Information During Disruption (PIDD) Programme. L.B. Foster Netpractise is the digital and software solutions division of L.B. Foster Europe, part of listed global infrastructure supplier L.B. Foster Company. 

Launching Inform Media 

First launched to the rail market at the start of 2020, Inform Media by L.B. Foster is a comprehensive, end-to-end digital journey navigator tool. The disruption information software brings together journey planning data feeds from a variety of sources to inform personal and business travel decision-making. It has been developed to run on L.B. Foster’s Inform hardware range of mobile and fixed screens, which was launched in 2017, combining the latest in high definition, touchscreens with mobile, wireless and rechargeable technologies.

Damian McCracken is L.B. Foster’s operations manager responsible for the delivery of Inform Media. He says: “Inform Media is driven by an extremely powerful media generator, which provides plug-in applications that support ‘passenger first’ strategies. These include a train, tram, plane and bus locator visualised on maps, plus enhanced wayfinding and mapping tools, as well as walking, taxi and cycle hub links.

“What attracted interest from Network Rail and TOCs is that Inform Media focuses on the total journey line. This is based on a detailed analysis of actual passenger journeys, identifying critical touchpoints at which information is accessed. These include ticket booking, car parking, platform information for station arrival, where to go, security information and retail/food and drink opportunities.”

How Inform Media delivers the bigger picture for Network Rail and TOCs

Alongside the expected disruption information capability, Inform Media applications include real-time live train information drawn from Knowledge Base and Darwin feeds. Inform Media’s unique, user-friendly journey planner visualises disruption and recommends alternative route options for customers. Additional applications include timetable information, station mapping and customer user surveys, as well as hosting revenue generating advertising and social media feeds.

Tom Wood, Head of Stations Kent and Sussex at Network Rail was responsible for the cost, programme and quality of new technology implementation for the Southern region. Tom explains: “With COVID-19 there’s never been a greater need to provide brilliant communications to our passengers. That’s not just about communicating the steps we have taken to reduce the risk of spreading the virus in stations, but also about providing valued-added information to enhance the journey experience.

“When I first saw the totems it was clear the positive impact they would have on the passenger experience in our stations and would improve the passenger information available.”

GWR is an active partner in the Passenger Information During Disruption (PIDD) Programme, a national initiative which ensures Network Rail and TOCs apply a consistent approach to the provision of information during service disruption. As part of GWR’s PIDD Delivery Plan, it provides customer information screens, which during disruption can be changed to ‘disruption mode’.

Graham Kett elaborates: ”The outcome of our work with Tom is an intelligent, in-station way-finding solution for customers, which includes Near Field Communication functionality. Plus a flexible routing engine that allows users to define parameters for walking around within stations. For example, configuring one-way systems, ticket barriers, exits / corridors closed at certain hours etc, then defining all of their destinations, such as retail units, food and drink or station facilities.

“Each totem running the module then presents to the user a list of the available destinations, sorted into categories for ease of searching. Once selected, the routing engine calculates the most suitable route based on the configuration factors, along with knowledge of the totem’s location to present the shortest, most efficient route. If the only route is through a ticket barrier, the user is advised that a ticket is needed to complete the journey, and if any steps are present in the journey, an option is given to show an accessible, step-free variant.

“All of this is done on-the-fly, so staff don’t have to pre-programme the routes. This means that temporary closures, such as maintenance works, flooding etc can be added to the system quickly and all affected routes will automatically update. For journeys that take the user out of the station, a route to the most appropriate exit will be shown, with a link through to Google Maps walking directions to show the rest of the journey.”

On board with TransPennine Express

Inform Media’s disruption and operational messaging module is more commonly referred to as an operational information system (OIS). Inform Media OIS has been developed jointly in a project with TransPennine Express for deployment across its network of stations in the north of England.

Richard Buckley is Customer Communications Manager at TransPennine Express. He explains: “At TransPennine Express it’s our goal to provide all of our customers with the information they need, when and where they need it. We don’t want them having to ‘self-help’ and seek out disruption information for themselves.

“That’s why we embarked on a project in 2019 to provide location and route-based service disruption notifications. It’s a project where we’ve needed to draw on external expertise. That’s where our rail sector technology partner L.B. Foster Netpractise fits in. L.B. Foster’s Inform Media digital passenger journey planning solution is the gamechanger for us. It aggregates multiple information data feeds and presents it on screen in a simple to use and understand format.

“As with the best solutions, Inform Media is a really simple answer to a long-standing industry issue and it will make a big difference to our customers. Clearly there’s a real degree of complexity when interpreting the data feeds and translating this into bespoke maps where multiple incidents can conceivably occur at the same time. The team at L.B. Foster’s software division enthusiastically embraced the challenges specified by our Customer Information Team. They’ve successfully delivered the initial phase of the project, paving the way for future collaboration to further enhance information for our customers.”

Richard continues: “We are fully committed to putting our customers first. We are always looking at ways to achieve this, which is all about embracing a culture of continuous improvement. Our investment in Inform Media and its roll-out across our managed stations is just one part of a much bigger story. Providing our customers with easy access to information that helps them make better-informed decisions about their journeys is clearly a big step in the right direction.”

L.B. Foster’s Graham Kett concludes: “Today, train performance isn’t good enough. Passengers deserve a reliable railway. Working with our valued partners, we will continue to develop Inform Media to help Network Rail and TOCs to achieve Passenger Information During Disruption (PIDD) compliance. That, in turn, will help to improve National Rail Passenger Survey scores, specifically for the Provision of information about train times/platforms.”

Ends

Editors notes

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